Like You
by Joker88
Summary: Perhaps he had a wife at one time, and they lived in a castle and had ten happy children. That's what he likes to think, that's not what happened but now with Gotham's punchline beginning to look like a bad joke, the Joker remembers. R


* * *

I don't really think this is the Joker's story. I just loved the Joker's expression and voice when he told the story. I think this is what could have happened. A little more detail to the story that The Joker told Rachel at the party. _**~ "Now I see the funny side. Now I'm always smiling!"~ The Joker**_

* * *

_**Written because I had no chocolate cake.**_

_**

* * *

  
**_

"Come on Jack, try to smile just a_ little_ bit." I gave her a mock glare and tried to pose nicely for the camera. I hated pictures, Merideth on the other hand took photographs of anything and everything, especially our cats. Snooty, Ruffles, and Patches stared down at me from every wall like long dead school masters that you were forced to stare at while waiting for the school authorities to come and reprimand you.

The bright blue light flashed for the hundredth time and I winced. Meri laughed, filling the small grungy apartment with bells. "You look like you're on the rack."

"Why can't I be the one taking the pictures?" I asked with a grimace.

"Because you're terrible with a camera. Please, let's try it again and don't look like you're being forced to suck on lemons."

"Can't beautiful, I have to go to work."

She smiled and caught me by the shoulder. "Saved by the clock yet again."

I kissed her cheek and she giggled.

"Time's always on my side sweetheart," I grabbed my coat and shoes. "See you tonight."

"You haven't heard the last of this you villain!" Merideth called after me as I shut the door.

Chuckling I tapped down the steps two at a time, her smile still warm on my back

* * *

_Later that day_

Defeated I trudged my way up the stairs to the apartment. Yet another day of being talked at and treated like a service fixture. I was just too tired to cope with the world anymore.

The key had to be jiggled for almost five minutes before I could let myself into the apartment. Merideth wasn't home yet, but I needed some rest anyway. I made my way down the long corridor to our bedroom, elongated yellow cat-eyes bored into my back with accusing gazes. I swear I was going to scratch the eyes out of ever single one of those damn pictures.

The bed was small, hard, but to my aching head and tired bones it was the softest feather bed that any prince could want, the rough cotton was like silk on my cheeks and I barely noticed when I slipped from the apartment into dreams.

"Jack?" She was home. My eyes were still closed and I tugged her onto the bed in the semi-darkness. Her bare feet were cold against my sleep-numb legs but her smelled like the city, glazed and roated peanuts from the vendor who sold them in front of the booth where she worked. Pollen from the park that she walked through twice a day. Gasoline and sweat from the walk along the city streets. Everything separate and intertwined, tastes of good and bad mixed with her natural earthy scent.

God, I loved her so much.

"Jack?" Her voice shivered on the tired syllable. I groaned and snuggled further into her hair.

"Jack, the water's not running." I froze, the enormity of getting up and fixing yet another problem engulfed me. There was a slight huffy breath from the delicate and sometimes irritating creature next to me, Meri's version of a snore.

Rolling over I squeezed off our bed and hugged the wall, trying not to move the bed as I struggled around the dark bedroom, trying to find a familiar piece of wall to cling to.

The kitchen was dark and smelled like cheap cheeseburgers. In there was a tall glass by the sink where Meri had tried to pour herself a cup of water. I flipped up the tap and waited. There was a deep gargling noise, the sound of a dying pipe in the last thrashings of it's death. A tiny trickle of speckled water slid into the basin.

Meri was supposed to pay the bills last week.

* * *

_Two weeks later_

"Meri?" There she was as beautiful as ever in a black dress that clung so tightly to her curves that it seemed to be strangling her. She smiled, her mouth trembling at the corners as she recognized me.

"Meri, what are you doing?"

"Doing my part to pay the bills" Her eyes glinted strangely in the reflection of neon lights and green felt tables. Her hands were empty, no chips, but stained with the mascara that she had been fixing in the bathroom all night.

"You promised." My voice barely whispered to her ears but I knew she heard me. Those worried wrinkles appeared at the corners of her eyes and she looked down, her eyes going dark with guilt. "Jack..."

"You lost it didn't you?" I didn't mean for it to sound so accusing but I couldn't seem to pull the disappointment out of my head. She had promised that she had been cured off the dice addiction. That she was never going back to the tables. She had looked him in the eyes and _Promised._

Now her eyes were watering her raccoon makeup staring to melt and soften. "Can we go home?"

I took my coat off and pulled it over her shoulders. I didn't say a word as we made our way to the door, there was nothing to say, no helpful voice popped up in my mind with comforting or disparaging words. I was too tired for that, was too numb. We had just lost everything. The rent, the water, electricity, the food for the month, my entire paycheck, all gone.

_If only I could understand why, Meri. Why?_

A rough hand ripped me from my wife and spun me around. "Where do you think you're going?"

Average Gotham thug. I lifted my hand to my wallet and gave itto him. Not even bothering to watch him take our last five dollars I pushed Merideth towards the door. Too tired to care anymore, to tired to wonder when my life had become such a lonely trash heap.

_We'll sell the house and live with her parents for a while, if they'll have us._ _Unlikely._

"Hey," The hand took a hold of my neck and dragged me to a halt once more. "This ain't what the pretty lady owes. Tell your bitch to pay."

"We don't have the money."

That still hurt, the admission of total failure in the face of a man who probably didn't care.

"I haven't told you how much she owes yet."

"We don't have the money."

He could practically smell the rage building in his assailant, quite frankly he didn't much give a damn what they were going to do. Put their future kids in debt?

_Yeah, they can do that._

He turned with Meri and walked out of the sweltering, sticky, unpleasant circus of gambling freak shows.

* * *

_Six minutes and fourty nine minutes later_

Two of the thugs grabbed Merideth's hair, pulling her to her knees, forcing her to raise her head to the dark sky. Tears gleamed on her cheeks, lit by the dank muzzy light emanating from the street lamp.

"But your boy here, he ain't so lucky. I'ma mess ya' up little gal, Ima mess you up good. You boy here he ain't gonna wanna stay wit' you once I'm done."

He forced her head back so far that I thought her neck would snap. She was screaming and wailing and so was I. The lead thug had a knife out, a wicked blunt looking thing with a serrated edge and he was leaning in closer to my Merideth's face.

He was going to kill her, he was going to slit her throat right then and there.

I launched myself up, ready to protect my wife, ready to tear all of these son's of bitches to shreds. I'd like to think I got a few good punches in, but the truth was, I barely even touched them. All in all, someone hit me on the back of the head and I slammed into a wall. They broke my arm and both my legs. Couldn't move, couldn't fight.

Copper and salt coated my teeth, but I couldn't spit it out, I was too busy trying to breath as my chest face and stomach were pulped beyond use. Merideth was screaming but I couldn't reach her. Unconsciousness came quickly but I can remember the first cuts they made on my wife.

And I couldn't protect her.

Blackness couldn't come quick enough.

* * *

_Eight weeks later_

There she was, at the bar as usual. Makeup that had been caked on her face had smeared. She was beautiful, even with the still livid scars that marked her face. They only emphasized her green eyes.

"Meri?"

Those same green eyes turned to glare at me. _Empty Empty Empty._

She said nothing but She didn't have to. I could see the number of empty drinking glasses at the bar. A burly man sitting behind her was nuzzling her neck, one of his hands buried under her shirt. Her lipstick was smeared across a mouth which limply held a small, soggy cigarette. One hand caressed a small drink.

I stood there, watching another man touching my wife. Watching my wife self destruct. Watching my love die. I stood there for what seemed like days, my heart slowly collapsing in on itself, my legs slowly sliding to the floor. I couldn't move my mouth, the shock and hurt was too great. I had suspected, but to see it, watching my sweet Meri do these things.

There was a cavern in my chest, I was scared and furious and overwhelmed with grief that I could barely move. I wanted to cry and scream and kill her and kiss her. I wanted to turn around and forget what I had seen.

But I did none of these things. I stood in the smoke, and loud scratchy music. I stood listening to the click of pool balls. The the laughter that was everywhere. People shari8ng a joke, a moment of humor that would be forgotten soon. But would be burned in my memory for the rest of my life.

And those _empty empty empty _eyes, they stared at me. Not recognizing, just staring.

And then the anger kicked in.

I seemed to glide to the bar. My shoulders bumping into every ugly tattooed shoulder in the bar. And suddenly I was staring eye to eye with my wife. Almost in a dream I knocked her drink to the ground, smashing it on the floor. I grabbed the hair of the man who was still sucking my wife's neck. He snorted like a pig and I saw his face.

Nobody I knew, but another thug, exactly like the ones who had ruined my life. I pulled him upright and smashed his face into the bar, Merideth's drinks scattered. And everyone near the three of us had stopped talking and stared. Dazed, the man hadn't really understood what had happened. I brought my fist back and swung it into his jaw. Something cracked.

He slumped to his knees, putting his chin in range of my knee.

I took the shot and he fell backwards into a stool. His legs were bleeding, courtesy of the glass on the floor. He'd bitten his tongue and blood gushed out of his mouth. I threw myself onto his chest and stared down at this object of my hatred.

I broke his nose first. I pulped his face. I punched until my hands couldn't move. I had broken fingers on this guys face.

I punched until my hands slipped in blood and my own teeth hurt from the force with which I had been clenching them.

But there was still the rage, the undeniable alien anger and hurt that just seemed to go on and on. I could never be the same.

A hand slipped to my shoulder and gently tugged me to my feet. I turned to look at Merideth. Those green eyes were still empty. Still emotionless, but her scars had whitened, she was scared.

_Good._

"Jack." The voice was hoarse but it was still my wife's. "Let's go home Jack."

I was surrounded by eyes. Shocked faces. _All the same._

I took the cigarette from her lips and we walked out. I didn't touch her.

She started to cry.

* * *

_Yeah... it's like a monkey on crack cocaine right? I'm sorry I'm just too tired to connect the scenes. I have another chapter nearly finished (After all he hasn't gotten his scars yet.) Besides I'm still pissed about the chocolate cake that my house mates ate without waiting for me. I baked that damn cake._


End file.
